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Pac-Man (universe): Difference between revisions
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However, Namco's project in between, 1980's ''Pac-Man'', would arguably become even more definitive of both the era and Namco's legacy. A young Namco employee named Toru Iwatani designed the game with the intention to appeal to a wider audience beyond young boys and teenagers — demographics that were typical of the time because of the prevalence of space shooter-themed arcade machines. He therefore fashioned a game out of maze-like elements and a colorful aesthetic with cute character designs, including a player character he originally named "Puckman" after the Japanese phrase ぱくぱく ("paku paku"), an onomatopoeia used to represent the sound of eating. The character and the game itself were renamed ''Pac-Man'' for the North American release, as it was realized the original name could be vandalized to resemble profanity by changing the P into an F. | However, Namco's project in between, 1980's ''Pac-Man'', would arguably become even more definitive of both the era and Namco's legacy. A young Namco employee named Toru Iwatani designed the game with the intention to appeal to a wider audience beyond young boys and teenagers — demographics that were typical of the time because of the prevalence of space shooter-themed arcade machines. He therefore fashioned a game out of maze-like elements and a colorful aesthetic with cute character designs, including a player character he originally named "Puckman" after the Japanese phrase ぱくぱく ("paku paku"), an onomatopoeia used to represent the sound of eating. The character and the game itself were renamed ''Pac-Man'' for the North American release, as it was realized the original name could be vandalized to resemble profanity by changing the P into an F. | ||
The original ''Pac-Man'' is set in a static, neon-colored maze, where the wedge-shaped [[Pac-Man]] must traverse every corridor and lane at least once in order to eat every one of 244 dots distributed across the screen. Pac-Man is at constant risk from four differently-colored "[[ghosts]]" that roam the maze with the intention to collide into him, which will cost him a life. Each of the four ghosts has a unique way of targeting Pac-Man, giving them character beyond being simple enemies. | The original ''Pac-Man'' is set in a static, neon-colored maze, where the wedge-shaped [[Pac-Man]] must traverse every corridor and lane at least once in order to eat every one of 244 dots distributed across the screen. Pac-Man is at constant risk from four differently-colored "[[ghosts]]" that roam the maze with the intention to collide into him, which will cost him a life. Each of the four ghosts has a unique way of targeting Pac-Man, giving them character beyond being simple enemies. Four of the dots in the maze are large, blinking [[Power Pellet]]s. When Pac-Man eats one of these, the ghosts temporarily turn blue and vulnerable, and will be briefly taken out of the game when Pac-Man collides with them in this state. | ||
The point score — the ultimate objective of the game, like with many arcade games — increases with each dot that is eaten. The score can be further increased by eating the ghosts (with higher rewards for eating multiple ghosts in a row) or the [[Bonus Fruit|fruits]] that appear at certain thresholds twice in each round. When a maze is cleared, the board will be reset, and the next round will begin. As the rounds continue, the ghosts become faster and more aggressive, the Power Pellet's duration becomes shorter, and higher-valued fruits appear. After round 20, the game reaches its maximum difficulty, and essentially continues endlessly until the player runs out of lives, or reaches level 256, the bugged "kill screen" which cannot be cleared. When all levels are cleared perfectly, the maximum possible score is 3,333,360 points. | The point score — the ultimate objective of the game, like with many arcade games — increases with each dot that is eaten. The score can be further increased by eating the ghosts (with higher rewards for eating multiple ghosts in a row) or the [[Bonus Fruit|fruits]] that appear at certain thresholds twice in each round. When a maze is cleared, the board will be reset, and the next round will begin. As the rounds continue, the ghosts become faster and more aggressive, the Power Pellet's duration becomes shorter, and higher-valued fruits appear. After round 20, the game reaches its maximum difficulty, and essentially continues endlessly until the player runs out of lives, or reaches level 256, the bugged "kill screen" which cannot be cleared. When all levels are cleared perfectly, the maximum possible score is 3,333,360 points. | ||